Our Company Blog

Removing Animals From Your Chimney

The heat and smoke of your fireplace, combined with its dark confines, may make your chimney seem inhospitable. Many animals and birds have the opposite view, however. The warmth that flows up from you home can seem cozy and inviting. In addition, the walls of your chimney can offer protection from predators and the elements. That’s why a variety of animals will try to make a home in your chimney, if given the opportunity.

The dangers of animals in your chimney.

Do you hear scratching and movement from your chimney walls? Have you noticed an animal lurking on your rooftop near your flue? If so, it can be tempting to ignore, but ignoring an animal intruder in your chimney is a big mistake! Animals can damage your flue liner. Their bodies and their nests can create dangerous obstructions that can force smoke and carbon monoxide back into your home, or that can ignite and cause a chimney fire. Animals that find their way into your chimney and get stuck can die inside the chimney. Consequently, they can fill your home with a putrid smell as they rot. In a worst case scenario? Animals can bypass your chimney damper and gain entry to your home. This is where they can be aggressive, cause damage to your furniture, floors and décor, or spread dangerous diseases.

What to do about animals in your chimney.

Do you hear the telltale rustle of animals or birds in your chimney or see animals or birds entering and exiting your flue? If so, it’s time to call in chimney professionals. Never try to deal with an animal on your own! Threatened animals can become aggressive and bite or scratch. If you accidentally kill or trap the animal in your chimney, you will be stuck with a rotting corpse in your chimney. Additionally, some bird species cannot legally be removed from your chimney; you must wait until the animals migrate away and then have the nest remains swept away.

Chimney technicians trained in animal removal will know how to remove an animal or bird safely from your chimney. A trained chimney technician also can sweep the chimney to make sure that any remaining nest, food or debris within the chimney has been cleared away. In addition, he or she will inspect the chimney for any damage that could have been caused by the nesting animal.

How to keep animals out of your chimney.

Of course, it’s ideal to prevent animals from invading your chimney in the first place. Your chimney should be outfitted with a chimney cap, or a top-sealing damper, that is surrounded by a metal cage. These cages are specifically designed to keep your chimney – and your home – safe from animal intrusions.

If you need an expert to remove an animal from your chimney, call Your Chimney Sweep to schedule an appointment today! We can remove the animal and make sure that your chimney is once again safe for use. If your chimney is unprotected from animal intrusions, we can outfit your flue with a chimney cap or top-sealing damper that will keep pests out of your chimney.

Maintaining a clean smoke chamber

By now, you understand the importance of keeping your chimney clean. You may not know the importance of keeping one element of your chimney particularly clean: The smoke chamber.

What is the smoke chamber?

The smoke chamber is the bottommost portion of your chimney, located just above the damper. The smoke angles inward and upward toward the chimney flue. When your fireplace is in use, the smoke chamber funnels the smoke from your fires into the chimney flue.

Why is it so important to maintain a clean smoke chamber?

Smoke chambers take a lot of abuse. When a fire is burning, the smoke chamber is subjected to extremely high temperatures. Any creosote or debris that has built up within the smoke chamber is a fire hazard. The extreme heat from the fire can cause creosote or debris to ignite. In fact, many chimney fires originate within the smoke chamber.

Additionally, creosote and soot can build up rapidly within the smoke chamber. The shape of the smoke chamber can cause smoke to bounce around the chamber when fire is burning, causing creosote to form. On top of that the smoke chamber is also tricky to clean. Because of the smoke chamber’s shape and location, the smoke chamber isn’t easily seen or accessed during a chimney sweeping. It takes special care and attention from the chimney sweep to ensure that the smoke chamber is clean and free from any damage or weaknesses.

What else should you know about your smoke chamber?

During your annual chimney sweeping and inspection, it also is wise to ask your chimney sweep about your smoke chamber’s construction. Smoke chambers should be smooth, to help smoke find an easy path to the chimney, but many masonry smoke chambers are improperly constructed. In those chimneys, smoke chambers are feature “steps” caused by the staggering of the bricks, causing the smoke to swirl around and remain in the smoke chamber longer than it should.

If your smoke chamber is improperly constructed, it can be corrected with parging. Parging involves smoothing the smoke chamber walls with a specialized masonry material. Parging your chimney’s smoke chamber makes your chimney safer and increases the efficiency of your chimney. Often, parging the smoke chamber can resolve fireplace smoking problems.

How can you ensure that your smoke chamber is clean and properly constructed?

As with most chimney maintenance, maintaining your smoke chamber begins with a chimney sweeping and inspection. During your sweeping, make sure you ask your chimney technician about the cleanliness, condition and construction of your smoke chamber. If you want to ensure that your smoke chamber is clean, properly constructed and designed to keep your home safe from the threat of a chimney fire, call Your Chimney Sweep to schedule a sweeping and inspection today!